Florida's First Choice for Autism Support

Posts tagged ‘language’

You may have heard the term “person-first language” before (that’s person-first, not to be confused with first-person, a point of view); simply put, it’s a manner of speech which aims to avoid any kind of dehumanization or marginalization amongst those with disabilities. Now, there is some controversy surrounding the usage and importance of person-first language, but we here at CARD believe its use to is of the utmost importance. I’ll go more into it in this, but if you would like to read more about what person-first language is, here’s a link to a page explaining it in great detail: https://www.thearc.org/who-we-are/media-center/people-first-language.

First of all, what is person-first language in the context of speech and writing? Let me give you an example: instead of saying “that autistic boy,” we prefer “that boy with autism.” Autistic is an adjective; i.e. a word that describes or defines something/someone. In our opinion, a person should not be defined by their disability, be it autism or some other condition. Autism may be a part of who they are, but it is not the main aspect of their identity. When describing others, most people will say, “that girl with the long hair,” not “that long-haired girl.” The long hair is just a part of who she is, not what defines her. While not an offensive or even particularly distasteful example, the same concept applies here. If we utilize person-first language for such mundane things as hair color, then why not do the same for autism?

There is one other thing I would like to add, and it’s the main reason why I personally advocate the usage of person-first language, especially in regards to autism. There is a particularly nasty trend going that’s been going around, mostly on the internet, which uses “autistic” as an insult for behavior and/or actions deemed undesirable. To use a personal example, I have played many games online where I witnessed someone make a simple in-game mistake, to which many will viciously attack that person, calling them autistic just because they didn’t fit their definition of perfect. It’s even happened to me, and it’s very upsetting. For a long time, “retarded” has unfortunately been a rather prevalent insult, but now the vocabulary is expanding to include autism specifically, and it saddens me. The thought that calling someone “autistic” carries such a negative connotation is a disheartening thought, but it’s just another reason why I believe person-first language is the way to go. Being on the spectrum is nothing to be ashamed of, and you should be proud of who you are!